1. Field
Embodiments relate to a drinking water supply device.
2. Background
A drinking water supply device may be configured to supply drinking water to users and may be an independent device or a component of an electric home appliance, such as, e.g., a refrigerator. The drinking water supply device may supply not only ambient temperature drinking water but also cold water or hot water via cooling or heating drinking water flowing in the drinking water supply device. The drinking water may be underground water or raw water supplied from a hydrant or a water supply source, or the drinking water may be purified water purified by filtering raw water.
The drinking water supply device may be a storage type drinking water supply device or a direct supply type drinking water device. In the storage type drinking water supply device, raw water or purified water may be stored in a tank and discharged from the tank according to a user's discharge command. In the direct type drinking water supply device, drinking water may be directly supplied to the user according to the user's command, without having a water tank as in the storage type drinking water supply device. For example, the direct type drinking water supply device may control drinking water to be supplied by pressure of the water supplied from a water supply source or by pressure of the water reduced by a pressure reducing valve.
To discharge drinking water, the user may manipulate a discharge lever provided in the drinking water supply device. The discharge lever may include a mechanical discharge lever or an electric discharge lever. The mechanical discharge lever may be configured to open and close a drinking water outlet hole using a force of a spring provided between a cock and a discharge lever. The electric discharge lever may be configured to open and close a valve provided in a drinking water outlet line or a drinking water inlet line according to an operation of a sensor.
The mechanical discharge lever may have a limited restitution of a spring installed between the discharge lever and the cock, so that it may be difficult to apply the mechanical discharge lever to the direct type drinking water supply device having a relatively strong water pressure. Accordingly, the electric discharge lever may be provided in the direct type drinking water supply device and may have a function of discharging drinking water by using a pulling force or a pushing force.
Technical advantages of the mechanical discharge lever, which may discharge drinking water through the pulling force, may be difficult to apply to the electric discharge lever provided in the direct type drinking water supply device mentioned above. The electric discharge lever may have to be continuously pushed so as to keep discharging drinking water continuously. The electric discharge lever may also need to have several sensors so as to discharge drinking water.